Sunday Morning Iraq Economic News Highlights 3-5-23

Sunday Morning Iraq Economic News Highlights 3-5-23

The Iraqi Bank’s Dollar Sales Increased By 52% In Today’s Auction

2023-03-05 03:47  Shafaq News/ The Central Bank of Iraq's sales of dollars increased in an auction today, Sunday, by 52%, to record $125 million.

Shafaq News agency reporter stated that the Central Bank sold today, during its auction, 125,670,000 and 8 dollars, a 52% increase compared to last Thursday, in which sales amounted to 82,617,564 dollars, which the bank covered at a basic exchange rate of 1,305 dinars per dollar. For documentary credits and international settlements of electronic cards, at a price of 1310 dinars per dollar for foreign transfers, and at a price of 1310 dinars per dollar in cash.

Our correspondent added: The dollar sales were distributed between strengthening the balances abroad in the form of transfers and credits by 64,870,000 and 8 dollars, while the rest of 60,800,000 dollars went in the form of cash sales.

He pointed out that the banks that bought cash dollars amounted to 17 banks, while the number of banks that met requests to strengthen balances abroad reached 18 banks, while the total number of exchange and mediation companies participating in the auction was 139 companies.  LINK

Dollar Exchange Rates In The Iraqi Market

https://www.alsumaria.tv/uploadImages/DocumentImages/Doc-P-449346-638135955467165525.jpg

Economy  2023-03-05 | 01:44  Source:  Alsumaria News  7,038 views  Alsumaria News – Economy Alsumaria News publishes, today, Sunday, the exchange rates of the dollar in the local markets.

The selling price of the dollar was recorded at 152,500 dinars per 100 dollars.

While the purchase price of the dollar was recorded at 152,000 dinars for every 100 dollars.

And it wasCentral Bank of Iraq He decided to adjust the exchange rate of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar, as the price of buying a dollar from the Ministry of Finance reached 1300 dinars per dollar and sold it at (1310) dinars per dollar to banks through the electronic platform, and it is sold at (1320) dinars per dollar from banks and non-financial institutions. banking to the final beneficiary.  LINK

Sudanese Advisor Reveals The Reason For The Continued Rise Of The Dollar And The Date Of Its Stability

Today, Saturday, the financial and economic advisor to the Prime Minister, Mazhar Muhammad Salih, described the continued rise in the dollar exchange rate in Iraq as “interim” and ends when the equilibrium point is reached.

Saleh said, in a press interview seen by “Takadam”, that “the compliance of local banks with the conditions and controls of global compliance is constantly improving, and that what is happening in terms of fluctuations in the exchange rate in the parallel market is a temporary matter.”

He added, "This is a temporary matter, until the total stability in the convergence of exchange rates at the point of balance in all markets, and what is currently happening in terms of price fluctuations is an expression of a temporary stage of the labor of conditioning for compliance and discipline, and it requires some time."     https://takadum-news.com/archives/152606

Iraq Ranks 30th In The World With The Largest Gold Reserves

Baghdad today - follow-up  Today, Sunday, the World Gold Council announced that global central banks have bought 30 tons of gold, while noting that Iraq has maintained its 30th rank in the world with the largest gold reserve rating.

In its latest schedule for the month of March 2023, which I viewed (Baghdad Today), the council said, “During January, global central banks added 30 net tons of gold to global international reserves, up by 16% from the previous month.” “Gold sales in the same period amounted to 12 tons,”

he added, “The Turkish Central Bank bought 23 tons of gold, the Chinese Central Bank bought 15 tons of gold, and Kazakhstan bought 4 tons,” noting that “the Central Bank of Uzbekistan was the only one who He made the sale of 12 tons.”

He pointed out that “Iraq maintained its rank 30 globally out of 100 countries listed in the table with the largest gold reserves, after it rose ten ranks in July by purchasing 33.9 tons of gold, bringing its gold possession to 130.3 tons, which represents 8.6% of the rest of its other reserves.” .

Globally, according to the table, the United States of America still leads the rest of the countries with the largest possession of gold in the world, with 8,133 thousand tons, followed by Germany with 3,355 thousand tons, and then Italy came with 2,451 thousand tons, while Mauritania ranked 100th, with 1 ton, preceded by El Salvador, with 1.4 tons.

On June 27, Iraq announced the purchase of new quantities of gold, approximately 34 tons, an increase of 35% over what was in its possession.

It is noteworthy that the World Gold Council, which is based in the United Kingdom, has extensive experience and deep knowledge of the factors causing market change, and its members consist of the largest and most advanced gold mining companies in the world.   LINK

An American Report Reveals The Details Of The Electronic System For The Exchange Of Dollars For The Iraqi Customer

2023.03.05 -  Baghdad - people     A report by the American newspaper "The New York Times" dealt with the unintended "difficulties" and "great suffering" caused by ordinary Iraqis from the country who intend to travel outside Iraq and need dollar currency, resulting from the recent banking procedures and provisions that the United States and Iraq followed to limit From the illegal leakage of hard currency to criminal beneficiaries outside the country and from those accused of money laundering,

"Nass" channel on Telegram.. our latest updates

Pointing out that the demand for the dollar has increased and that the cost of buying it in Iraqi dinars has risen at some of the local currency dealers.

The following is the text of the report:

Long queues of Iraqis who plan to travel outside the country form in the early hours of the day outside the exchange shops, carrying bags full of Iraqi currency with them. These days, it is difficult to find an exchange shop that has remaining dollar balance, and the shops that have balance run out early. 

Abu Ali, the owner of a money exchange shop in the Karrada area, says, "I have no dollars left." 

The new provisions, which were applied by agreement between the United States and Iraq, require more transparency regarding bank transfers of dollar currency from the Iraqi reserve account for currency deposited with the Federal Reserve Bank in New York.

These provisions came into force late last year, and are part of a long-awaited plan to modernize Iraq's financial system as it begins to comply with provisions that most countries follow and adapt to provisions requiring greater transparency in international money transfers.    

However, some Iraqi merchants and others who used to pay in dollars via international transfers did not like this procedure or they were unable to implement the requirements of transparency, and for this they resorted to exchange shops, causing a great demand for the dollar in the Iraqi street and its high price against the dinar.

Every day, the Central Bank of Iraq facilitates financial transfers from its account at the Federal Bank in New York for the benefit of Iraqi merchants and people to pay the prices of goods imported from outside Iraq. Money transfers are important because few commercial entities have international bank accounts.    

On the other hand, a share of the hard currency is sent in cash to the Central Bank of Iraq, which goes to exchange shops and banks, and is disbursed in large part to Iraqis who intend to travel abroad.

Until the day when these provisions were implemented, American officials were unable to track the course of financial transfers of hard currency and whether they ended up with parties that were originally included in the economic sanctions lists.

According to the new provisions, it requires persons or companies that request money transfers for dollar currency to reveal their identity and return and the identity of the party or persons that will receive the money, and then the information is reviewed by an electronic system as well as by experts in the Central Bank of Iraq and the Federal Bank in New York before The transfer is being disbursed.

The Iraqi economist, Ahmad al-Tabaqjali, head of the Asian Union Fund for Iraq, says that the new system allows banks around the world to conduct electronic checks on remittances issued from Iraq to other countries.

Tabaqjali adds, "In short, this banking system makes it easy to detect suspicious cases."    

The financial advisor to the Iraqi government, Mazhar Salih, says that many requests are now rejected, noting that sometimes questionable identities are the reason, and at other times the reason is that many Iraqi merchants do not have the required licenses to import goods or that they are not legally registered. They are commercial entities and therefore constitute a breach of Iraqi law. Salih added that these refusals created an increased demand for the dollar at the Iraqi exchange shops, and its exchange rate rose significantly to Iraqis who have a legitimate need for it.    

Since 2003, there are two rates for the exchange rate of the dollar against the Iraqi dinar. There is the official rate set by the central bank and an unofficial rate for the black market and is often higher. When there is a scarcity of the dollar currency, its price increases on the black market in exchange shops. 

The differences between the two prices create difficulties for the Iraqis, as happened to the woman, Jannah, who is a mother of four children. She says she is saving money to buy a $250 refrigerator.

In October, it cost 320,000 dinars in Iraqi dinars, but today, due to the scarcity of the dollar, its price has risen to 375,000 dinars, and she says, "The new price is beyond my purchasing power." According to Central Bank data on daily dollar financial transfers, the new provisions have reduced the flow of dollars into the market by approximately 65% ​​compared to the period preceding these measures, and the daily rate of dollar sales decreased from 180 million to 67 million dollars.

  Since that time, transfers began to rise, but they are still less than half of the rate they were before the implementation of the new banking system.

The report indicates that until now it is not clear exactly the extent of the decrease in illegal financial transfers.

  Douglas Suleiman, president of the Gulf States Institute in Washington and former US ambassador to Iraq, says, "I cannot limit the rate of manipulation and fraud at 90%. Perhaps the rate of manipulation is 45% and another 45% is incompetence or just not knowing how to deal with the new provisions."

  Translated by: Hamed Ahmed - Al-Mada     https://www.nasnews.com/view.php?cat=103229